A feedback system designed to hold the value of its output constant independent of disturbances may be known as a regulator. In some conventional electronic circuits, linear regulators may be utilized for isolating voltages in a circuit. In these electronic circuits, power for operating the circuits may be supplied by a voltage source and a ground reference. There may be jitter or noise in the voltage source, which causes the voltage level supplied by the power supply to operating circuits to vary.
Jitter is time-based error resulting from abrupt and unwanted variations of one or more signal characteristics, such as the interval between successive pulses, amplitude of successive cycles, frequency of successive cycles and phase of successive cycles. Jitter may result from varying time delays in the circuit paths between components in a path in which a signal traverses. Jitter is generally characterized in qualitative terms such as amplitude, phase, pulse width and pulse duration, and/or in quantitative terms such as average, RMS or peak-to-peak.
Noise that occurs in a ground reference may also cause the voltage level of a voltage supply to vary. A linear regulator may be utilized in applications where it is important that the voltage applied to a circuit block be maintained at a constant voltage level with a minimum of variation in that constant voltage. Although some circuits may be utilized to limit unwanted variations in voltage levels, these circuits are applicable for use at a specific frequency.
Further limitations and disadvantages of conventional and traditional approaches will become apparent to one of skill in the art, through comparison of such systems with some aspects of the present invention as set forth in the remainder of the present application with reference to the drawings.